June 29, 2006

Seriously though, you know the ship is going down when the rats are jumping off. BSB brings us news that Ney's Liar in Chief, Brian Walsh, has left Ney's office, as well as Will Heaton, Ney's Chief of Staff and Chris Otillo, Ney's Legislative Director.

Roll Call brings word that Matt Parker, district director in Ney's St. Clairsville office has been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury as part of the Abramoff probe.

June 28, 2006

If you're in the central Ohio area join us on Monday, July 3rd to help in one of two ways:

Help staff the ODP booth on Red, White & Boom's midway. We'll put you to work handing out lit and talking to voters about our candidates anytime from 11AM-9PM.

Walk with us in the Red, White & Boom parade at 6PM. Parade lineup begins at 5PM at the corner of Front and Spring St. The parade begins at 6PM and is broadcast live on NBC4, so wear your Strickland, Brown, Kilroy, Shamansky, etc t-shirt for maximum visibility.

If you can volunteer, email me, John Sauter at john@ohiodems.org or give me a call at 614-221-6563 or toll free 1-877-OHIO-DEM.

June 27, 2006

Word from the Toledo Blade today that four Toledo Republicans are expected to be charged with crimes related to money they took from coin dealer Tom Noe.

The GOP officials: Lucas County Commissioner Maggie Thurber, Toledo City Councilwoman Betty Schultz, former Toledo Mayor Donna Owens and former State Rep. Sally Perz face up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

"Noe's Angels" prove that Ohio Republicans are allergic to ethics, honesty and integrity.

a recent letter underscores troubling lapses that have surfaced from her 12-year tenure as auditor in Ohio's far northeastern county.

The most serious questions about O'Brien's record arise from state audit findings spread over several years, including a 2003 finding that a lack of safeguards in O'Brien's office led to the embezzlement of $40,000.

Couple those findings with a series of costly court disputes with local officials, and a picture emerges of an auditor with a penchant for controversy a picture at odds with her pleasant demeanor.

The embezzlement of $40,000, coupled with the improper purchase of a Ford Explorer in 2003, the overpayment of O'Brien's own salary by $1,500, the refusal to pay bills related to a county construction project and her inability to get along with fellow county officeholders makes it clear O'Brien isn't ready for the State Treasurer position.

Bob Ney's vulnerability continues, says the National Journal. Ney is currently listed as the 3rd most vulnerable House seat. Why? Ney's Blackberry incident.

We have a hard time taking the pulse of this district. That said, Ney appeared thin-skinned with his recent Blackberry remarks to a Copley News reporter. Clearly, the bad press is getting to him, and that’s never a good sign for a targeted incumbent.

June 26, 2006

Ken Blackwell's Secretary of State office came before the State Controlling Board today, asking for tens of thousands of additional dollars in taxpayer dollars to defend the office from a lawsuit filed by a Brown County truck driver who was upset Blackwell posted his Social Security number online.

Democrat State Sen. Ray Miller voted against the request, which passed. Miller had the following to say:

“We shouldn’t be throwing money at Secretary Blackwell for a legal defense that is indefensible,” said Senator Miller. “Secretary Blackwell created this problem when he failed to use common sense and failed to heed the concerns brought forth by taxpayers and state leaders about exposing the raw personal data. He didn’t and hasn’t rectified the situation, yet he still continues to collect tens of thousands of dollars from taxpayers for the problem.”

June 23, 2006

Mike DeWine signaled his intention not to fight corruption, waste, and fraud in Iraq today by voting against the creation of a bi-partisan commission that would crack down on contractors in Iraq wasting taxpayer money. It is DeWine's second vote in eight days against the creation of the bi-partisan commission.

Why do we need to fight the waste of taxpayer dollars in Iraq? A recent U.S. Department of Defense audit found that $250 million dollars had gone to Halliburton for "unreasonable and unsupported" expenses.

"Once again, Mike DeWine has chosen the side of the White House and Halliburton instead of standing up for Ohio families and our military," said Congressman Sherrod Brown.

The proposal, introduced by Sen. Byron Dorgan, was modeled on the Truman Commission, which saved $15 billion dollars in WWII.

"Harry Truman stood up to a President of his own party to fight contract abuse during WWII, and saved taxpayers billions," Brown said. "But after three years of war in Iraq, Mike DeWine won't stand up to President Bush or his friends at Halliburton. Ohio families need a new direction."

Mike DeWine has taken over $12,000 in contributions from Halliburton, including $2,000 in this election cycle.